ARTM stops running shuttles during REM operating hours
Effective Monday, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain and CDPQ Infra ended the shuttle bus services operating along the REM route during the hours the light-rail network is running.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the ARTM said the move follows a recent period of stability and reliable performance by the REM, which has been able to meet user needs effectively.
The bus lines, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil, which previously ran along the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge corridor, will no longer be in service during the day on weekdays. Low ridership levels on these shuttles were cited as the primary reason for their discontinuation during the day.
The following bus routes will continue operating during hours when the REM is currently closed but would normally operate, from 8:20 p.m. to 1 a.m. on weekdays and 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. on weekends:
568, between Gare Centrale and Île-des-Soeurs
720, between Île-des-Soeurs, Panama, Du Quartier and Brossard
721, between Gare Centrale, Du Quartier and Brossard
722, between Gare Centrale and Panama
'In recent weeks, the REM has regained a level of stability and reliability, allowing it to provide the predictability users expect,' CDPQ Infra president and CEO Jean-Marc Arbaud said in the statement.
The REM shuttles started after disruptions were caused by record snowfalls in February. Further disruptions after service resumed prompted Quebec Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault to demand the shuttles keep running even when the REM was in service.
The REM will continue operating weekdays only until 8 p.m. until July 4, when the system will shut down entirely for six weeks as part of network-wide testing to prepare for the launch of the Deux-Montagnes and Anse-à-l'Orme branches, scheduled for October. An exception will be made for Grand Prix weekend, June 13 to 15, when the REM will run all day and evening.
On Tuesday, REM service was interrupted again for more than 30 minutes during the morning rush hour. A 'technical issue' was cited as the reason. Shuttle buses were deployed.
This story was originally published May 5, 2025 at 4:18 PM.
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